Record numbers pass 2015 IPA Foundation Certificate

Over 1,000 adlanders have passed the award-winning IPA Foundation Certificate, the industry’s primary qualification aimed at graduates and practitioners with up to one year’s agency experience. This is the highest number of distinctions and overall passes since the qualification launched in 2004.

Thursday 23rd July, we celebrate the record 1,079 new adlanders that achieved Foundation Certificate success with a party at Proud, Camden. Full details of the party can be seen here.

Candidates should also look out for their results being advertised in Campaign, Marketing, Marketing Week, The Drum and Media Guardian throughout July and August.

Key facts:

• 135 member agencies from all disciplines took part (up 15% on 2014)• 1,113 delegates took the exam in 2015 (up 16% on 2014)• 1,079 passed the exam (up 13%) of these:o 412 were distinctions (up 343%) o 524 were passed with credit (down 40%) o 143 were passes (up 93%)

Says Patrick Mills, Director of Professional Development: “The IPA Foundation Certificate goes from strength to strength: it is now ingrained in all IPA member agency graduate programmes. This year saw a record number of candidates sit the exam and we awarded more distinctions this year than ever before. This provides real evidence that advertising has come of age as a profession.”

Says Indre Dragunaite, IPA Qualifications Manager: “It's exciting to see an ever growing cohort of professionals starting their career journey with the IPA Foundation Certificate. We’ve received positive delegate feedback on the course content, and our promise is to continue listening to our agencies to deliver award-winning qualifications for years to come.”

Share your reaction to your resultsOn Twitter (@IPA_Updates) or Facebook (IPA) tagged #IPAFC. The best submission will be awarded a free IPA training course from a choice of the IPA Eff Test or the IPA Search Certificate. T&C’s here. Winner announced on social platforms on Monday 25 May.

The Foundation Certificate involves the completion of a comprehensive course, delivered online, followed by a two-hour examination. This took place in February 2015 in assessment centres around the UK.

Other industry body employees, such as those at D&AD, the IPA and CAP, also took the qualification.

Since its inception, 7,869 industry practitioners have passed the Foundation Certificate and over 10,000 people have passed an IPA qualification in the UK.

The Foundation Certificate has been taken in Australia, Asia, the USA and MENA and IPA qualifications have now been adopted globally across 60 countries.

All candidates who have undertaken the 2015 IPA Foundation Certificate will be invited to a party in July to celebrate. The IPA will also be paying tribute to them in the advertising press to coincide with the party.